Open Wounds- A Kalin Kessler fic
by mintsareawesome
Summary: Miki Oda has been abandoned by her companions, and now she has no one left. Now she's in a strange town she's never even heard of. Can Kalin, the man who runs this town, help her on her road to recovery from addiction?
1. Chapter 1

'Kalin!' Shouted a voice from somewhere behind me. Turning around, I saw West standing there.

'What is it, West?'

'A person has been spotted on the edge of the town. Dustin told me to come and get you.'

'Ok, West, I'll go check it out.' Ruffling West's hair, I made my way out of the door and into the harsh sun. It was summer time, and the sun was even hotter than usual. I had made sure that all the kids had proper hats to protect them from sunburn, and when it was this hot, most people usually stayed inside.

For once, I wasn't wearing my black coat, it was just too warm. I made my way down the street, kicking up dust as I walked. I could see Dustin waiting for me under a shelter that had been constructed.

Dustin was a good man, who used to work in the mines. When he had got out, I had assigned the job of being lookout. He was happy enough in this role, as it meant he could usually read a book whilst on the job.

'Kalin, there's someone on the far north border, but I have no idea who, they're a long way out.'

'Alright, I'll grab my runner and go check it out. I'm sure its nothing to worry about, although it is unusual for someone to be this far out.'

Dustin nodded. 'Alright Kalin, you be safe now'. Then Dustin turned back to his book, and carried on as he was.

A few months ago, a package had arrived from Yusei, Jack and Crow. They hadn't had the time to deliver it in person, but I understood that. They had constructed me a runner. It was well built and durable, making it perfect for use out in this part of the world.

The runner was black, with pale blue lines running along. I hopped on, not bothering with a helmet. It was only a few kilometres, and in this heat a helmet would feel suffocating.

Whoever was out there must be having a hard time. They were very exposed to the sun and probably didn't have any water with them.

When I reached the person, they were motionless. I jumped off the runner, and gently rolled them onto their back. It was a young woman. She had short black hair with the fringe brushed to one side. Her pale skin was dirty from the dusty ground. I shook her gently, to try and get her to wake up. The only response I got was a groan.

She obviously needed help, so I decided to bring her back to the town. As carefully as I could, I lifted her from the ground, and onto my runner. Then I climbed on behind her so that I could hold her in place. I drove the runner at half the speed I had on the way down, just to be safe. I didn't know what kind of shape she was in and I didn't want to make it worse.

I would take her to Faye. Faye was the only doctor in the town, but she had taken on Nico as an apprentice. Nico loved helping people, so she got a lot out of helping Faye.

When I reached the town, I lifted the girl off the bike and carried her to Faye's house. I knocked on the door, and Faye opened it. When she saw the girl a frown immediately appeared on her face.

'Carry her in Kalin. Put her on the bed in my examination room please. Do I need to ask you where you found her?' Faye's tone was businesslike and set about getting numerous medical supplies from cupboards.

'Outskirts of the town, Dustin saw her there. I don't know who she is or why she was there, but she looked like she needed help.' I responded. 'Faye, is there anything I can do to help?'

She nodded. 'If you don't mind. It would be helpful if you could hold this to her head.' she said, passing me a cold flannel she had just put in water. 'It will help to cool her down, she was in the sun for too long.'

I took the flannel and held it to the girl's forehead. The door then opened, and Nico came in.

'Ah, Nico. Could you please fetch me some fresh bandages from upstairs?' Faye asked.

Nico nodded, and ran out of the room to do as Faye had asked.

'Right. The first thing I can see is that this girl has broken her ankle.' Faye said, as she began to examine the girl. 'It's sticking out at an angle. I'll need to reset the ankle.' She sighed as she said this.

'Is that bad?' I asked.

'Well, it's going to cause a lot of pain, and I don't want to administer local anaesthetic because it could cause more damage.' Faye was frowning again now, obviously concerned.

'Could you do it now whilst she's still unconscious? Would that be better?'

'Well of course it would.' Faye snapped. 'But it will take me a while to check how the bone is broken and she may well be awake by then. So I need to hurry up.' With that, she worked in silence, and I carried on holding the flannel to her forehead, feeling a little useless.

Nico then came back in holding a box filled with bandages.

'I have the bandages, Miss Faye.' She said.

'Thank you Nico.' Faye took the bandages from Nico and placed them on a countertop.

'Nico, take over from Kalin and hold the flannel to her head. Kalin, over here.' I did as she said, and passed the flannel to Nico as I walked over to Faye.

'Kalin, I need you to hold her down. She could wake up as I do this and she cannot thrash around, alright? It will just damage her leg, so make sure you are holding the leg as firmly as you can.' I nodded, and held the girl's calf, as Faye prepared to reset the ankle.

'Ok, on the count of three. One, two, three!' Faye pushed the ankle with a loud click. The girl winced, but she did not wake.

'Thank goodness.' Faye sighed in relief. She then took some bandages from the box and wrapped them around the ankle tightly, before applying some kind of paste.

'What does that paste do?' It smelled very odd.

It was Nico that answered me. 'The paste sets the bandages. it means that the ankle stays in that position so that I won't move out of place until it's fully healed.'

I gave Nico a smile, and then turned back to Faye.

'Right, Kalin, you can get out now.' She said.

'What? Why?'

'I need to remove her clothes to check for rib damage. From what I can tell she took quite a fall and I need to check for more injury. Do you really want to stick around for that?' Faye asked, raising an eyebrow.

I blushed slightly, and shook my head.

'I'll make my way out then.' And then I hurried out of the examination room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi everyone! I hope you enjoy the chapter. Please review and favourite if you would like, as that would be really great. Thank you for reading! :D**

The next morning, I got a call from Faye. She told me that the girl was alright, and had woken up yesterday for a few minutes, only to fall back asleep. But, Faye had invited me around to her house this morning, so that when the girl woke up I would be able to talk to her.

I needed to ask where she had actually come from. I had no problem with her staying in the town, but obviously she was still a stranger so I wanted to find out a little bit more about her. Also, I genuinely wanted to make sure she was ok, I had been worried about her. I had changed a lot since Yusei came to this town. I had become more caring, thanks to Nico and West, and I felt better about myself. The past was the past, and I wasn't that person anymore. All that mattered nowadays was protecting the townspeople, and it was a job that I took seriously.

I threw on a red shirt from my wardrobe, since my usual shirt was dusty from yesterday. I had a few gulps of water before leaving my house. The street was quiet again today. It was still very hot, so everyone was staying inside. I couldn't blame them at all. As I walked down the street to Faye's house, I spotted a few daisies on the side of the street. I bent down and picked them. I could take them to the girl, for her to have by her bedside.

I was glad to reach Faye's house. Walking seemed to take longer in this heat, and I was thankful to be inside, where the glaring sun wasn't on my neck. My neck actually felt a little sore, I hoped I hadn't caught the sun. As I rubbed my tender neck, Nico ran over to me to say hello. I smiled at her before giving her a hug. She then took my hand before leading me to the room where the girl was.

'Kalin, she's just woken up, so make sure you stay quiet. She's still tired, and she seems really upset, so be nice, ok?' Nico told me.

I nodded at her, before pushing the door open.

She was lying on the bed, just staring up at the ceiling. Closing the door behind me softly, I crossed the room to place the daisies I had found into a vase on top of a cabinet. When I turned to face her, she was staring at me. She had deep brown eyes, that were surprisingly intense as they bore into mine.

Shifting my gaze away, I sat down beside her, in the visitor's chair. I wasn't sure what I should say, I felt a little nervous, like I was about to be judged. I decided to go with the obvious conversation starter.

'Hello.' Wow, that was really a wonderful way to start a conversation. Way to go, Kalin.

The girl furrowed her brows before sighing. She glared at me.

'You obviously want something. Come on, out with it, what do you want to ask me?' She looked very angry, I wasn't sure exactly what I had done to annoy her.

'I'm Kalin. I found you on the outskirts of the town yesterday and...' I was cut off.

'I asked for you to ask me what it is you're so eager to know. I'm not interested in your life story.' She was looking more and more angry by the second. It was more than a little scary.

'Well, since I run this town, I need to know who you are, and why I found you in the middle of this canyon. It isn't normal for people to show up like this, you know.' I replied, trying not to irritate her further.

'Well, as for who I am, my name is Miki. Why you found me in the canyon? I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure. I don't remember much.' Miki was blunt and to the point, in some respects she was like Faye in her businesslike manner, but Miki seemed more troubled, and much more angry.

'Do you have a concussion? Is that why you don't remember?' I was curious. Why would she have forgotten everything?

'I don't know. Possibly. I know that my ankle is broken and that I have bruising around my ribs, but nothing else as far as I've been told. Are you done talking to me yet?' Miki said, sighing at the end of her sentence.

'Um, yes, I suppose. I may drop in later today or tomorrow though, there are some things I still need to discuss with you. But for now I'll leave you to rest.' I stood up to leave, and she just turned away from me, now facing the other wall as she lay in her bed.

I took the hint and made my way out of the room.

'Kalin, there you are. Nico told me that you were here. I need to talk to you about Miki.' Faye had been in the corridor, and was now beckoning me into another room. I followed her into what turned out to be her dining room.

'Sit Kalin, I'll get some juice for you. You won't be wanting tea in this heat. Is orange juice alright?' She shouted as she bustled around her kitchen, which was adjoined to the dining room.

'That's great, thanks.' I raised my voice a little so that I knew she could hear me. A few seconds later Faye came back into the dining room carrying two glasses of juice.

'I'm almost out of juice, when is the next shipment arriving?' Faye asked.

Our supplies out here in Satisfaction town came from shipments that arrived once every one to two weeks. We couldn't grow our own produce in the canyon, so we had to import it.

'The next shipment arrives the day after tomorrow, so it isn't too long away.' I replied.

She nodded, then set her glass down on the table after she had taken a sip.

'Good. Anyway, I now need to speak to you about Miki. She remembers nothing about how she ended up here. I've checked, and she didn't hit her head, so there is no concussion. Believe me, I checked thoroughly and there is no physical evidence of memory loss. There are also a couple of other worrying things I've noticed...' Faye paused, unsure of how to carry on.

'Go on, it's alright.' I encouraged her to continue speaking.

'Well, it's just that I've noticed that her hands have been trembling, and earlier, when she went to the toilet, she was vomiting. I can't be sure Kalin, but the signs are pointing to alcoholism. I thought that you needed to know.' She frowned a little. 'It would explain why she had memory loss, she may have been drunk when she arrived on the outskirts of the town.'

I was silent for a while as I processed this information. It was plausible, but what worried me was how she had ended up all the way out here. There weren't exactly any bars or clubs nearby that she could have stumbled from when drunk. I was still very confused by her arrival here, and I wanted to put the pieces together in my mind.

Silently, I finished my juice then set the empty glass down on the table.

'Faye, I need to go and check something out. Keep an eye on her, alright?'

'Ok then, Kalin.' She nodded.

'I'll let myself out. Have a good day Faye.' I offered her a smile before making my way out the room and then leaving her house.

As I walked back down the street towards my house, I decided that I was going to figure this whole thing out.


	3. Chapter 3

**I hit a wall with this chapter, I'm not sure why. Anyway, hopefully it isn't too bad, and the next update will be much quicker than this one. Enjoy!**

I climbed onto my runner, grabbing my helmet from the shelf in my garage. The helmet had come with the runner when Yusei, Jack and Crow had sent it over. The helmet complimented the colour of my runner. It was pale blue, with a couple of black lines running over the top of the helmet. I placed it on my head, and then started up my runner. I adjusted my feet so that I was sitting more comfortably, then I revved the engine, accelerating out of the garage.

I was on my way to visit the spot where I had found Miki yesterday. I hadn't had a lot of time to examine the area yesterday, since my main priority had been making sure she was safe and getting her to Faye. My thoughts were that there might be something there which could give me information about Miki, and where she'd come from. I still couldn't figure out why she ended up here of all places. Satisfaction Town is in the middle of nowhere. There are no major roads or railways nearby, so I just couldn't think of a reason why someone would turn up out of the blue. How would she have even found the place if she's been drunk like Faye thought she was?

None of it made any sense. I tried to clear my mind as I rode the short trip to the area where I think I found Miki yesterday. Usually, driving and feeling the wind on my face worked wonders on putting my mind at rest, but today it didn't work so well. My mind was just too occupied.

Something on the ground caught my eye. It was a leaflet, covered in dust from the floor, and slightly crumpled. I pulled over my runner, and reached over to pick the leaflet up from the ground. Trying my best to smooth it out, I saw that it was advertising a circus. Apparently they had been performing in Domino City two weeks ago. What was it doing out here? There wasn't that much wind to blow it all the way from the city, it was miles away. I sighed, and shoved into my pocket. Looking around the area it was in, I noticed a fragment of green glass lying on the ground.

There were a couple of other fragments dotted around, and together they formed a rough line. Out of curiosity, I hopped off my runner and followed the fragments. They led to a smashed beer bottle, which was next to a brown duffle bag. I grabbed the bag and opened the top of it. There was a photograph at the top of the bag, showing a a young girl with short black hair and smiling brown eyes. Next to her was a boy who looked younger, with black hair, and the same brown eyes as the girl. It took me a second to recognise the girl as Miki, she looked so different in this photo, so happy.

I closed the bag again, not wanting to rummage around Miki's belongings. Swinging it over my shoulder, I jogged back to my runner, and made my way back to the town.

-

Later on that day, I went back to Faye's house, to leave the bag with her. From the photo, I could tell it belonged to Miki, so it was only right to return it to her.

'Kalin, visiting twice in one day! Bit eager aren't we?' Faye teased me with a wink as I arrived. 'She's in the same room as before. Go on in.' I nodded my thanks and made my way to the room I'd been in earlier today. My cheeks were a little warm at Faye's teasing.

Gently pushing the door open, I saw that Miki was asleep. Careful not wake her, I placed her bag at the foot of the bed. I glanced at her face as I made my way out. Even in her sleep she looked troubled, a slight frown adorned her face. She was so different from the girl I had seen in the photograph, and a part of me wanted to change that.

I could see some of the same upset in her that used to plague me.


	4. Chapter 4

**New chapter! I should have the next one up by next week. Also, I finished the plan for this, and overall the story is going to be 9 to 10 chapters long. Just thought I'd let you know. Hope you enjoy the chapter! :)**

**Kalin's POV**

I stared at the circus leaflet spread out on the table in front of me. I had been debating with myself since finding the leaflet yesterday, over whether to ask Miki about it or not. Since the leaflet was found so close to her bag I thought that it might have something to do with her, but I didn't really want to push her for information. I had only spoken to her once, and she hadn't appreciated my questions. Just speaking to her made her anger flare up.

I sighed at the leaflet, deciding to go and visit Miki today. Grabbing a shirt from my dresser, I threw it over my head as I trudged to my kitchen. It was a small room, with a couple of counters and a few cupboards. Nothing more than was really necessary. It was the only room besides the bathroom that I made an effort to keep clean, as I was lazy when it came to housework. However I didn't like the idea of giving myself food poisoning either, so I made sure to wipe the counters every so often.

I grabbed a random box of cereal from a cupboard and poured some into a bowl that was sitting on the edge of a counter top. Not bothering to add any milk or sugar, I ate my breakfast quickly, washing it all down with a glass of water. I never really put a lot of effort into my breakfasts, they were usually very rushed, like today. I grabbed my trenchcoat from where it was lying on my sofa, then left my house, shoving the leaflet in my pocket.

It wasn't warm out today, for a change. Instead, the sky was overcast, and threatening to rain. Not wanting to be caught in any sudden downpours, I hurried to Faye's house, knocking on the door impatiently when I arrived.

'Kalin! I suspected it was you from the obnoxious knocking. Come in.' Faye said, as she opened the door. I rolled my eyes as I walked past her and made my way to the room where I would find Miki. The door was ajar, so I gently nudged it open.

I was met with a glare. 'Oh, it's you again. Come to pester me, have you?' Miki grumbled. She turned her head back to the comic book she had been reading, now ignoring me.

'I found this next to your bag yesterday, and I wondered if you had anything to do with the circus mentioned. It's just that we don't really get leaflets just being blown around here. Visitors are rare, to say the least.' I explained, sitting in the chair besides her bed, and waving the circus leaflet around.

Miki snatched the leaflet from my grasp, and looked at it. Her face showed no traces of recognition. She suddenly tossed the leaflet back to me. 'What's it to you anyway? I don't see how my past is any of your concern.' Miki had set her comic on the side table, and her glare was now directed at me at full strength. Her attitude was really starting to get to me a bit.

'Well, excuse me for wanting to know who you are. You should be a little more grateful that I brought you back here. You would be in a pretty bad position if I hadn't helped you, so cut the attitude.' I snapped back at her. Managing the town had mellowed me considerably, but sometimes my anger could still show through when I became annoyed.

I was a little bit pleased though, when she looked slightly taken aback at my words. I wondered if many people actually spoke back to her that much. However, her shocked look was quickly masked by her signature frown once more.

'Be that as it may, this situation isn't exactly within my control. None of this was my choice, so don't act superior towards me.' Her words were now filled with a venom that wasn't there before. Apparently, I had just angered her even more.

'Alright, sorry.' I sighed. 'I would just like to know a little more about you. It's my responsibility to look after everyone who lives here, and I'm not entirely comfortable with knowing nothing about you. We've had some bad experiences here. I just want to know you mean no harm to anyone here.' Miki's glare actually softened a little at that.

'I can understand your feelings. But, my past is not something I tell to just anyone. It's not a comfortable subject for me.' Her voice was less harsh when she spoke, and I relaxed a little, relieved that her anger had subsided somewhat.

An idea then popped into my head. 'How about I duel you? If I win, you'll tell me a little about where you came from. If you win, I'll leave you alone.' Yusei would have been so proud of me. His usual tactic was to duel people for answers, maybe it would work for me too.

Miki however, was not quite so impressed by my idea. 'I have no cards, and even if I did, I'm not going to play some child's game with you.'

'I could lend you some cards? Then will you duel?' I asked her eagerly.

'I literally just told you that I wouldn't duel even if I had cards. Are you deaf as well as stupid?' I thought that was a little harsh, even for her.

'Oh come on. One duel wouldn't hurt. Getting cards for you would be easy, I don't see the problem here.'

'The problem is that I can't get the fact that I don't duel into your thick skull.' She retorted irritably.

'If that's really how you feel then fine. But I really don't understand why you are so against dueling me. It isn't that much to ask...' I was cut short when Miki interjected

'How about this. I'll tell you about my past if you promise to _shut up_ about dueling.' She suggested.

Considering this for a second, I nodded in reply. I was finally going to find out where she came from.


	5. Chapter 5

Kalin's POV

She sighed irritably. 'Firstly, the reason I don't duel is because duelling is something that I only ever did with my little brother when we were growing up. So that answers one of your questions.' Miki rolled her eyes as she said this. It was quite a regular action of hers. She then started to speak.

'My brother died a few years ago. It was just a normal day with both of us walking home from school. We started to cross the road, then a car appeared on the road, it was travelling at well above the speed limit. I saw the car before he did and tried to pull him out of the way, but by then it was too late. The car hit him head on, he died almost instantly, right in front of me.' Miki glanced over at me, then I realised how shocked I looked. She looked away.

'Don't look at me in such a pitying way Kalin, it's offputting for me. Anyway, after the accident my parents became very withdrawn. He was like the light of their life, always cheerful and brightening their day. His death took it's toll on them, and their marriage. The fighting started and then it was like I just didn't exist to them anymore. As if I wasn't messed up enough from watching my brother die in front of me, my parents just became so distant I couldn't bring myself to talk to them. After a few months, I left. I couldn't stand being in that environment anymore. Everything about that place reminded me of him. That's when I joined the circus.'

At this point, Miki sighed, closing her eyes for a brief period of time. 'At first, the circus was wonderful. We travelled from place to place, and the changing scenery was so refreshing for me. I helped out where I could, mending costumes, caring for the animals. I had a good friend who was like a sister to me, she was a trapeze artist. But then after a year of travelling, the circus went bankrupt. It was bought by a new guy, who ended up sacking a lot of the people. My friend left, but I stayed with the circus because I had nowhere else to go. The new owner was cruel. If he thought someone performed badly, he would 'punish' them. The reason that my friend left was because she'd had one too many beatings from this guy. It only took a few weeks before he started to beat me. I was only a lowly helper, after all. That's when I started drinking.'

So, Faye had been correct when she thought Miki may have been a drinker.

'The drink took away all the pain. The physical pain from regular beatings and the emotional pain from my friend leaving and the death of my little brother. But I just carried on drinking and got addicted. When the circus leader realised how much I was consuming he kicked me out. I can only assume he dropped me off in the canyon when I was passed out. Apparently he was pretty rough, judging by the broken ankle. And there we have it. The end of my sorry story.' Miki gave a dark chuckle, then looked me in the eye. 'Are you happy now Kalin? You know all my dark secrets, you must be thrilled.'

I was speechless. When you considered that I'd become a dark signer because I thought one friend had betrayed me, it sounded a little stupid in comparison. I wanted to help Miki. I didn't want her to make bad choices like I had.

'My past isn't that great either, Miki. Look, you need a place to stay and a source of income. You can have a job and home here for as long as you need one. It's no problem. I've been through some dark times myself, although I'm not sure it really compares to what you've been through.'

Miki looked at me for a second. 'Wow, you've got me intrigued now.' I honestly couldn't tell how much of that was sarcasm.

'I may as well share my story, since you've shared yours.' Then, I told her everything.


End file.
